The Ten
by Close to the Edge
Summary: COMPLETE Arthur and nine other friends are trapped in a deadly and mysterious game where each night one of them is chosen to die. Who will live, who will die?
1. Chapter 1

The Ten

One

Fern was staying up late with a bag of cheesy cheetohs on a plate as she watched classic episodes of Sherlock Holmes. She dipped her fingers into the bag, pulled out some cheetohs, ate them, and licked her fingers. It wasn't every day she got to be a couch potato. Sometimes she thought she could sit on the couch and watch Sherlock Holmes forever. But then she remembered there was always an important mystery to solve and that she couldn't watch her favorite detective forever. Still, she loved to watch him for hours on end once in a while. She loved mysteries. And her parents were out for the night. So she could watch whatever mysteries she wanted to, even the violent ones her parents forbade her to watch.

The episode finished with the conclusion of the murderer and Fern got up and went to the TV and pooped out the DVD of the episodes. She put it back in its case and started searching for a movie her parents wouldn't let her watch. She liked to create scary stories like The Thing, but she wanted to see scary stuff other people made, too. She went through the DVDs one by one until she found the perfect movie. Scream starring Drew Bunnymore, Neve Ratbell, and Courtney Fox. She popped it in and waited for the fun to begin. What she saw filled her with horror.

She watched the whole thing in a state of shock. The violence and profanity nearly overwhelmed her. All the characters were horrible people, even Sidney Presrat, the girl you were supposed to be rooting for. She didn't like horror stories anymore, and she shut the TV off. She was glad it was only a movie when the phone rang. She slowly picked it up.

"Hello?" said Fern.

"Fern honey, you're going to have to walk to school tomorrow by yourself. Your Dad and I won't be coming back till the afternoon. Remember to eat a good breakfast!" Fern was relieved it was only her mother.

"Okay, I will Mom. Bye." Fern put down the phone. Suddenly she felt very alone. Once she had hung up the house seemed vast and empty, yet not quite empty. She felt a strange presence lurking around every corner, like someone was going to jump out at her. She shrugged the feeling off. Then the phone rang again.

"Hey, Mom."

"Number one."

"Hello?"

"I'll be coming soon," said the mysterious voice. Then it hung up.

Fern was really freaked out. Her friends definitely would not play a prank on her like that. She wondered just who would do that. The phone rang again.

"Fern. Call the police while you can. I'm walking up your driveway Fern. Never mind what I said about the cops. It won't save you. Bye." The caller hung up. Fern dashed out of the living room, tipping the bag of cheetohs. She screamed and ran up the stairs. She raced down the hallway and entered her room. She closed the door and hid under her bed and waited to see what would happen. She heard a knock on front door.

"Fern," said the voice. "Coming Fern." Fern waited in sheer terror as she heard things crashing downstairs, whoever it was was obviously looking for her. Maybe, she thought, she could open the door silently and make a run for it. Or maybe she could open her bedroom window, jump out, and make a run for it. But she knew that was a bad idea. Her fall would make a noise, and she would hurt herself falling, making her slower. So she decided on the first idea. Slowly, without making a noise, she crawled out from under the bed. She stood up. The floor creaked loudly. There was a pause, and then she heard footsteps making their way to the staircase and footsteps slowly climbing the stairs. Fern knew her only chance now was the window. She ran to the window and pulled it open. She jumped out just as the door started to creak open.

She landed with a loud thud. Surprisingly, she had hurt nothing in the long fall. She started to run to her backyard. She heard another thud just as she turned the corner to her backyard. She hid behind some large green bushes and waited. Then the stalker walked into view. In the dark she couldn't see the person's face, but she could just make out the outline. The person wasn't that tall, about as tall as her, so she figured it was someone her age. Apparently the person hadn't got hurt either, because they moved swiftly around the backyard in a circle, checking the hedges. When they were opposite Fern's hedge, she made a dash for it. She ran around the corner of the backyard. She heard footsteps right behind her. She reached her front door or the front entrance now. The door had been taken down. She ran in and hid behind the couch in her living room. She waited again.

The person walked into the front entrance. They walked directly into the living room and looked around.

"I know you're here Fern. I saw you from the window." Fern was practically trapped. If she could just zoom past the killer while they were looking the other way. Or cause a distraction. She slinked away from the couch without the person seeing. She went to the table and grabbed a bowl. She threw it towards the red couch. It landed with a crash. While the person ran towards the bowl thinking it was her, Fern ran to the kitchen and hid under the kitchen table. She sat there silently, praying that the person would look in any room but the kitchen after they found out they had been tricked. Unfortunately, they did look in the kitchen. The person walked in and sat down looking directly at Fern. Fern screamed. There was nowhere to go now. She was trapped. She couldn't do anything now but fight back. In a last attempt to save her life, she lunged at the attacker. The attacker was too quick, they grabbed Fern's wrist. They pulled out a knife and stabbed her. Fern screamed again, and realized she was bleeding. She slumped down on the ground. Life began to ebb away from her. The person turned on the kitchen light, turned to Fern and smiled. Fern couldn't believe who the person was. She died of not only blood loss but shock.

Meanwhile, in other homes in Elwood City, the children Fern had known were sleeping in their beds. They were completely unaware of Fern's gruesome fate. They were off in dreamland, dreaming strange bizarre dreams, partly due to the fact that somewhere, seep down inside of their soul, they knew something terrible happened. But nobody awoke or told their parents something was troubling them. They slept on while Fern died, and into the morning, when Fern had been dead for hours. They awoke with a funny feeling but shook it off. How could they have known something that terrible had happened, how could they have learned they had just lost a dear friend. And of course none of them knew they were targets in a deadly game that would take all their smarts, courage and more to live through. No, they were completely unaware to what exactly was happening around them.


	2. Chapter 2

Two

"Hey," Francine said. "Fern isn't here today." The whole gang was on the playground. Recess had just begun. So had the terror.

"Your point," Muffy said. She didn't really mean those words. She had a bad feeling the whole day, like something bad happened to Fern.

"You know," Arthur said. "I feel like something is wrong with Fern. Don't you?"

"Although the chances are highly unlikely, I have had a weird feeling that something terrible happened to Fern," said the Brain.

"You're right," said Sue Ellen. "It would be terrible if something bad actually did happen to Fern."

"Let's not think like that," said Francine.

"It was aliens! They abducted her!" shouted Buster.

"Oh, shut up Buster!" yelled Binky. "I am so sick of all of you're aliens crap."

"Guys, stop fighting," said Sue Ellen. "It's not going to solve anything. For all we know she just has a cold."

Everyone agreed Sue Ellen was right, and that there was probably nothing wrong with Fern and that she was probably only a little sick and would be in school tomorrow. They all played during the rest of recess. They were called in during classes and participated in a dreadfully boring lesson led by the dreadfully boring Mr. Ratburn. They all rushed to their lockers at the end of the day. Sue Ellen reached hers a little after everyone else. She had had to push through the crowd and by the time she got to her locker the crowd was gone. She noticed a note taped to her locker. She tore it off and read it. This was the note:

Thanks Sue Ellen for putting everyone's mind at ease. You relaxed them all. I appreciate that. It's nice to have them all so unsuspecting, and then it will be more delightful when they find out your fate tomorrow. And Fern's, of course. See you soon. I won't forget the scissors. Too bad you won't be there tomorrow to calm them down. Oh, well, it will be too late for that anyways by then. You're lucky, being cut out of the game so early. Early victims are always lucky. Number two.

Sue Ellen shivered. Something was not right at all with that note. What fate would she and Fern suffer. What did the note mean by early victim? What game was she playing? She didn't know of any ongoing games played by everyone in the gang. She put on her backpack with all her books and started walking towards the front door. She came to the front door, when she noticed a shadow. There was no one outside that she could see, but she could see a shadow directly in front of the door on the ground, like someone was standing right next to the door, waiting to pounce if she walked out. She slowly stepped backwards a few steps then turned around and ran. She could hear a door opening behind her. She let her backpack drop and ran like the wind down the hall and ran into an open classroom. She hid behind the teachers' desk and waited in fear. Nobody came.

Sue Ellen started feeling silly. Her parents were probably outside, waiting to pick her up, wondering where she was. She wanted to crawl out behind the teacher's desk, but she still had fear, fear stronger than it had been for some reason, like the waiting calm before the storm. It was growing inside her; it would keep on growing and getting stronger until she-

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Sue Ellen let out a high-pitched scream. She heard footsteps enter the room.

"Hello, Sue Ellen. I know you're here. Can't wait to see you. And stab you." Sue Ellen nearly screamed again. She had completely forgotten all the karate she was supposed to use in such a situation. All the Master's teachings had vanished from her mind. Still, she was brave. She stood up and faced the killer. The killer was wearing a ski mask.

"Stand back, I know karate!" screamed Sue Ellen. She jumped up on the table. "Get back, I'm dangerous!" The killer merely started walking closer. With one giant leap and one giant scream, Sue Ellen made it past the killer and ran for her life out of the classroom, down the hall, out the door, and into her parent's car.

"Dad. Drive now!" Sue Ellen screamed.

"Sue Ellen, what's wrong?" asked her father.

"No time to explain. Just go."

Sue Ellen's father drove away from the school and to her house. He parked the car and turned to her. "What was that all about?"

"Nothing."

"You were screaming Sue Ellen."

"Was I, oh yeah, I have a lot of homework and I wanted to get home really quickly." Sue Ellen's father gave her a funny look, and then they both walked into their house.

"Hey Sue Ellen, where's your backpack," said Sue Ellen's father.

"Uh, oh I lost it somewhere; guess I can't do my homework now."

"We should go back to the school to retrieve it. Let's go."

"Nah, I didn't have any homework."

"But Mr. Ratburn always gives homework, and you said yourself you had tons of homework. Is something going on, Sue Ellen?" Right then and there Sue Ellen should have just admitted the whole story. But she didn't want to worry her father, so she didn't tell the truth.

"Did I say that? I didn't mean it."

"Then why were you rushing to get home?"

"Because there was this program on about karate. I couldn't miss it." Sue Ellen's father stared at her suspiciously then left the room. Sue Ellen ran up to her room and locked the door. Downstairs she could hear her mother vacuuming and her father watching the TV with the volume way up. If she screamed, they wouldn't hear her. She shook the thought away. Nobody would attack her now she was in her house, or would they?

Sue Ellen lay on her bed thinking the day over. Fern not coming to school, the fight they had about it, the boring class, the run for her life in the school, and her father asking questions. It had been a long day. But it wasn't over yet.

Bang! A brick had been thrown against Sue Ellen's window. The pane was severely cracked. Sue Ellen lay frozen in horror as she watched the brick soar again against her bedroom window. She came to the window and looked down. There was the same person with the same mask she had seen in the school. They were after her! Smash! The brick zoomed straight at Sue Ellen. It smashed the pane and smashed her skull as well. She lay in extraordinary pain on the floor with her head bleeding. Her parents still had not heard. She tried to crawl to the door, and she heard a thud against the outside wall. She reached the door and turned around. There stood the figure; the thud was the ladder they had used to climb into her room. The person glided to Sue Ellen, grabbed her head, brought it closer, pulled out a knife, and slit her throat. Sue Ellen could not scream for the blood in her throat was preventing her.

Hours later her parents found her dead in her room, covered in her own blood. Her murderer remained a mystery. Police thought it might be linked to the murder of a girl named Fern in Sue Ellen's class. Everyone was sorry for Sue Ellen, her parents cried and cried. The police and relatives and friends comforted them the best they could. They would have to tell Sue Ellen's and Fern's classmates what happened to them tomorrow. They would grieve, but they wouldn't have to for very long.


	3. Chapter 3

Three

Arthur felt very unsettled as he sat down at his seat in Mr. Ratburn's class. He chewed on his nails from nervousness. He hadn't done that in a long time, but he had a really bad feeling about today. Buster sat next to him. He looked just as worried as Arthur. Now Arthur knew something was wrong if both he and Buster felt it. He turned to talk to Buster.

"Hey Buster, I have a bad feeling about today, about Sue Ellen and Fern in particular. This is the second day Fern hasn't been here, and Sue Ellen isn't here either. I'm really worried. What could've happened?"

"I saw a cop car outside," said Buster. "I saw a police officer talking to the principal. The principal was shaking his head. I saw another teacher overhear them and gasp. I just know it has something to do with aliens. Doesn't it always? Maybe they abducted Sue Ellen and Fern."

"I don't think so, Buster. Not this time. I think there's something here at work that is worse than anything Mulder or Scully ever investigated involving aliens. I think something beyond comprehension has happened to Fern and Sue Ellen, and is soon going to happen to all of us." Arthur didn't know how right he was. Suddenly Mr. Ratburn walked in, looking very sad.

"I have something to tell you all," said Mr. Ratburn. "Fern and Sue Ellen have been brutally murdered by an unknown attacker. All of your lives might be in danger. I wish you luck. And by the way, a note at the crime scene left by the killer says George, you're number three. So you better watch out George. Your days are numbered. Unless the killer is caught soon. But that probably won't happen. Now on with the lesson." Everyone was too scared to pay attention that day, especially George. He thought Wally his puppet would protect him when he got home. He was dead wrong.

When George got home, he locked himself in his wrong. His parents had gone out to get groceries, and he was all alone in the house. He tried not to think about that fact. He tried not to think about the fact that his life's story was about to end. Admittedly, in a very spectacular fashion.

Suddenly, an ax burst through his door. George screamed. He hid in the corner of his room, trembling with fear. He knew his life would shortly be over, unless he did something. Now. He grabbed Wally. His plan was to attack the killer with Wally. He loved Wally, but he knew Wally might break if he hit hard enough. And anyways, he loved his life more.

The ax finally burst through one last time when the door tumbled down. Standing there was a figure in a ski mask holding a large ax. George was frightened, but he wouldn't let fear get in the way of his survival, oh no. George knew life was a precious gift that you had to keep no matter the cost. George rushed forward before the attacker could do anything and hit the attacker in the head. The attacker fell backwards and George rushed out, thinking he was in the clear. Unfortunately for him, he was not, as the killer was not knocked out. The killer's arm reached out and grabbed his leg. He tripped and fell with a loud thud on his face. He was very afraid now.

George turned over to face the killer, who was now towering above him. They had thrown the ax behind them and were bending down. The killer picked up George's precious Wally. George didn't know for sure, but he could feel the killer smiling.

"Please," George whispered. "Please don't kill me like you killed the others. I gave up a better fight. I deserve to live."

"Actually," the killer whispered. "You're going to be the easiest to kill. Say your prayers. You'll need them." The killer raised Wally high above them, and then brought it crashing down on George's head. George screamed in pain and fear. The killer continued to whack Wally against George's skull until he was dead. The killer then proceeded to go to George's bathroom, wash their hands, and leave the premises. Of course, they also brought Wally with them as a sort of souvenir. Except the head. The killer left the lifeless head of Wally next to the equally lifeless head of George.

News of the gruesome murder traveled fast around Elwood City. By the next morning, most of the students in Mr. Ratburn's class knew of the third murder in three days. They all hoped dearly, there wouldn't be more, but deep down they knew. They knew there would be more. More than there already had been. What they didn't know was the extent to which it would happen. Except for one. One member of Mr. Ratburn's class knew exactly what would happen.


	4. Chapter 4

Four

When Mr. Ratburn announced the murder of George the next morning, the students were much less surprised than they had been the previous morning. Most of them had already known about it, and those who didn't could have guessed as much, considering George was absent.

"That's three to the body count," Mr. Ratburn said. "Oooh, I wonder who will be the next added to the list. I can't wait to see what will happen next. I better make a bag of popcorn to eat while I watch the events unfold. Oh, I feel like a gossip columnist saying this, but the killer left a note of who's going to die. Well, not exactly their names, but they said a genius, an aliens-freak, a psychic, a rich girl, a bully, a poor girl, and a completely average boy will die. I have a feeling some of those people are in my class. I wish you the best of luck. You'll need it to get passed this crazed psycho. Now, on with today's lesson." The children were more nervous than ever. Most of them recognized their personalities on that list. In fact, the only one who didn't was in the fourth grade class.

Meanwhile, in another part of the school, in the fourth grade classroom, Prunella Deegan sat, very worried. She had heard rumors that she would be the next to die and that the killer would get her this very evening. She couldn't believe it was true, although she had heard police talking outside the school that the note had said the psychic was next. The tension was almost unbearable. What was she to do? Of course she knew. She would predict the future to see what would happen.

When Prunella got home, she went immediately to her crystal ball. To her surprise, she found a note taped to it. Here is what it read:

Some psychic you are Prunella. You couldn't even predict your own death. Oh, well, too bad for you. You made it this far. At least you weren't an early victim. The first three were. We now enter the middle stage of the game and congratulations, you'll be the first death in that stage. Two more after you and we'll enter the final stage. Those in that stage will have to go through the most tension and the worst deaths, so it's lucky you're out now instead of later. I guess your little magical crystal ball isn't really worth anything, is it?

Prunella was very frightened. How did this get here? She suddenly looked up to see a figure in a ski mask carrying an ice skate. She screamed in fright and immediately chucked the crystal ball at the figure. The crystal smashed into a million little pieces on the floor. Suddenly, the figure started to laugh. The person took off their mask. It was only Rubella, playing a prank on her.

"What a terrible thing to do when I'm in danger!" screamed Prunella.

"Lighten up," said Rubella. She dropped the skates and exited the room.

Angrily, Prunella began to sweep up the crystal shards of her beloved ball. How could she ever live without it? She admitted she could predict her fate in other ways. Finally, there was nothing but the note left on the floor. She stared at if for a few seconds deciding what to do with it. She then bent down and angrily tore it into a million different little pieces. No, she wouldn't die, not her. She was strong. And she had her psychic powers on her side.

She looked up to see a figure in a ski mask holding a skate. "Very funny, Rubella," said Prunella. But then she noticed something strange. The figure was shorter than Rubella. In fact, it was shorter than she was. She took a few steps backwards toward the wall. There were no windows she could possibly hope to escape from.

"Get away from here, whoever you are," said Prunella shakily. The figure advanced on her, swinging the skate by the laces. Prunella notices the sharp edge on the bottom of the skate. She gulped. Whether it was her psychic powers that she thought she had or her instincts, she knew there was about to be a lot of violence. Upon whom that violence was to be inflicted upon, she couldn't tell. She couldn't count herself out of the game of life just yet, oh no. She was still living, still breathing. And then she made her move.

She dived between the killer's legs and scrambled out of the room. Luckily for her, Rubella had left the door open. She didn't know where Rubella was, but she had to find her. She checked her room. No Rubella. The figure was gaining on her. She ran down the staircase into the bathroom and locked the door. She was safe. For now. She had to formulate a plan while she still could.

Prunella didn't think the killer saw where she had gone. She thought that gave her enough time to figure out what to do. She would open the bathroom door, go down the hall and exit her house. She would run down to the Mackenzie's house and tell them what was going on. She would use their phone and then call the cops. After that, she figured everything would be fine. She didn't know her plan was doomed to fail right from the very start.

Prunella opened the bathroom door. She looked around. No killer in sight. This was a good sign. She ran down the hallway, being careful not to run into any killer. She opened the front door. She was almost to safety. She only had to walk down a few steps and then she would be in the front yard. On the first step down, though, something grabbed her from the bushes. She screamed, but no one heard her. The killer dragged her into the bushes where no one could see what was happening. The killer shut Prunella's mouth with one hand while she held the skate in the other. The killer held up the skate and the pushed it deep into Prunella's stomach. Blood burst out of her stomach and blood gushed out of her mouth. Prunella was too weak to move as she slowly died from the wound to her stomach. She watched helplessly as the killer cleaned off the skate blade and let it drop beside her. The killer crawled out of the bushes and slowly crept off and made sure nobody saw them.

Hours later, Rubella found the body of Prunella in the bushes. While the police comforted the sobbing Rubella, the news of Prunella's death quickly spread around like wildfire. This time, everyone knew Prunella's fate by next morning. There was grief from the students in Mr. Ratburn's class, except the student that was the cause of the horrible murder, but a small part of their minds were relieved that their class had been spared that night. Unfortunately, that would not be true in the nights to come.


	5. Chapter 5

Five

The announcement from Mr. Ratburn was not even needed that morning. All he said was Prunella, just that one word, and everyone understood. They also understood that one of them would be next. And a dreaded thought came into their heads: tomorrow was the weekend. They wouldn't even have the protection of school. Not like Mr. Ratburn himself helped. He once left the room and told everyone that by the time he came back somebody better be dead or he would give everyone an F. The students wanted to kill him for that, except one, because he wasn't on their agenda. But everyone else was.

Arthur suddenly realized something very important. All this time they had just been nothing but sitting ducks, doing almost nothing to prevent their fates from happening. He knew it was time to change that. He had to stop this while he still could. He needed everyone's help to sort out the killer. And this is why it was the middle stage. Action was beginning to take effect.

Mr. Ratburn had left the room yet again to make some more popcorn. Lessons at this point were non existent. He just sat watching them the whole day waiting for someone to strike. Unfortunately no one ever did, because then the killer would have been obvious, but the killer was too smart for that.

Arthur looked around the room. Besides Mr. Ratburn, there were seven left, including him. Francine, Muffy, Brain, Jenna, Buster, Binky and himself still remained. According to Mr. Ratburn, there were only clues left for six of them. Only six more would die. And then it struck him. That's how he would find the killer out. The one with no clue would be the killer. He thought of them in his mind. A psychic, a bully, a poor girl, an aliens freak, a genius, a rich girl, and a completely average boy were supposed to die. Prunella was dead, so the psychic was gone. Binky was the bully and Brain was the genius. Francine was the poor girl. Buster was the aliens freak and Muffy was the rich girl. That left him and Jenna. He guessed he was the completely average boy. He cringed at being the nondescript of all his friends, but that wasn't important at the moment. In that moment he knew it was Jenna.

He turned towards Jenna. Innocent, quiet Jenna who had bladder problems. There was also a rumor she liked George. Wait, that couldn't be right. She had had a crush on George, so how could she have brutally slaughtered him? Oh, well, he couldn't rationalize the mind of a killer. He knew he had to warn the others.

"Hey Buster," Arthur whispered to his best friend. "I figured out something."

"What is it?"

"Jenna is the killer. Its been her all along."

"No way, not Jenna."

"Its true. She's the only one who didn't have a matching stereotype in the clue left by the killer."

"You're right. We'll tell the others after school." When school let out, Jenna was the first to leave. Arthur thought he knew why, but the reason he guessed at was very different from the actual reason. He gathered the others together and told them what he figured out.

"And I'd thought I'd be the one to figure it out," said Brain.

"If Fern was still here, she would have been the one to figure it out. She was good at solving mysteries," Muffy said sadly.

"We don't have time to mourn," said Francine. "We have to kill the killer. Show Jenna no mercy."

"I'll beat her into a bloody pulp," said Binky.

"I don't approve of vigilante justice, but in this case I have to make an exception," said the Brain.

"Jenna already left, when should we strike?" asked Muffy.

"At her house," said Arthur. "Tonight." They all agreed to meet at Binky's house at eight. Then they would move to Jenna's house and kill her. After it was all planned, they went home to prepare.

A few hours later, Binky was preparing at his house. He was deciding between a knife and garden shears when the doorbell rang. He cautiously went to get it because it wasn't eight yet. He looked out the window first to see who it was. It was a figure with a ski mask on. The figure turned its head his way. Binky felt its cold, deadly stare, and knew it was Jenna. Suddenly, the figure jumped towards the window. Binky moved just in time as the killer crashed through the window, got up and dusted the glass off their clothing. Binky, not being the quickest thinker, stood there for a moment, frozen in fear. Then he ran into the kitchen and grabbed the phone. He had to call Arthur.

He turned around to face the killer coming towards him. He noticed the killer was carrying a large hook. He figured the garden shears could beat a hook and he instantly decided he wanted the shears over the knife. He held up the shears he had been carrying and took a step forward.

"Get back, Jenna. I'm warning you." Quick as a flash, the killer took the hook and swiped the shears out of his hand. They clattered to the floor a few feet away. Binky was in trouble. He knew he didn't stand a chance if he got to get the scissors. He could only think of one thing: to run to the bathroom and lock the door. He could only pray his friends would make it in time. The killer had showed up a little earlier than expected.

Binky ran to the bathroom and locked the door. He took a few steps until he almost tripped over the tub. He steadied himself, and started to dial Arthur's number. It rang once. It rang twice. It rang three times. Finally, after the fourth ring, he got a message. He hung up and tried again. Suddenly, he saw the door handle jiggle. He knew the killer was right beyond the door, and in that instant he knew there was no chance he was going to get through this ordeal alive. Suddenly, Arthur picked up just as the killer burst through the door.

"Hello," said Arthur on the other end. Binky was too scared to speak. Suddenly, the killer spoke.

"You are all fools. You were wrong about who the killer was." The figure took off the mask to reveal their face. Binky almost fainted in shock. But then he knew that if he couldn't save his own life, he could at least save Jenna's.

"Arthur whatever you do, don't kill Jenna," said Binky. "Jenna is not the killer, the killer is-" then the line went dead. Arthur became very confused. What happened? Then a realization hit him. Arthur wanted to cry. He called everyone to tell them what had happened. The whole plan to kill Jenna was called off. She was as innocent as she looked. But then who was the killer? It could be anyone. He had acted very badly. He had cried before he had called anyone, giving the killer time to make it home. He should have called immediately and the person who didn't pick up would be the killer, but he hadn't thought of that earlier. Now he wished he had.

The next morning, Binky's death was on the news. He had been hung to the bathroom door by a hook and left to die horribly. It had probably taken hours for him to die, all of them excruciatingly painful. Arthur knew right then and there they had to formulate a fool-proof plan to stop the killer. The question was, was their time? Would they all be dead in a matter of days? Arthur couldn't let that happen. He wouldn't let that happen. He began to formulate a plan.


	6. Chapter 6

Six

It was finally the weekend. Arthur both welcomed and dreaded this event. On one hand, it would give him more time to think out a course of action. On the other hand, he was more vulnerable to an attack on the weekend without the protection of being in school.

He had been thinking of several options. One thing they could do is all spend the night at one person's house, so the killer wouldn't dare attack with them all there. The flaw to that is that while walking to said person's house one of them might be ambushed, of course that would also reveal the killer, if everyone else was already at the house. Plus, the killer would be covered in blood. So they would have to wash off first, and they would be the last to arrive anyways. Arthur had made an important decision. He was willing to sacrifice one more person to stop the killer. It had been a tough decision. But it was one he had eventually decided on.

Suddenly, the phone rang. It was Brain. Arthur picked it up.

"Hello?" said Arthur.

"Hey Arthur, it's me the Brain. Listen, I have a plan. It involves everyone being in danger though, but it's the best there is. Listen to me, I'm the smartest and this is the best I could think of. We split into pairs. You go to Buster's house for the night and Muffy goes to Francine's. I'll go to Jenna's. We'll all keep an eye out for one another. If anything suspicious happens, one of us will call and tell the others."

"Great idea, Brain. I'll call and tell the others. They'll be delighted that we finally have a plan. The worst thing scared people can do is just sit back there and do nothing. If we've got them trying to do something, it makes them think more clearly and satisfies everyone. You need people to do something constructive. It just makes them less worried. Bye. Thanks for the idea."

"Your welcome. Bye." Arthur hung up. Then he realized something. Brain could very well be the killer. That would make Jenna a sitting duck. He shook the idea from his head. He didn't think Brain was the killer, he knew Brain too well. If it was any of his other friends going to Brain's house, he might not have risked it. But after all, it was only Jenna, and nobody really cared about her. She never really contributed anything, anyways. Arthur felt less guilty. He went and called all the others and they agreed to the plan. Only Muffy had any slight hesitation. She eventually gave in, and it was settled.

It was noon, and D.W. came in to watch T.V. Arthur realized that D.W. was in danger just by being his sister. He had to do something to protect her.

"Hey, D.W., why don't you go to the Tibbles today? I hear they have a crush on you," said Arthur, not very tactfully.

"They're gross. I like Emily much better as a friend, but she is on vacation."

"D.W., you need to make more friends if that's all you play with."

"Give me a break, I'm barely in school. Go whine to Kate or something." Right on queue, Kate started crying.

"I'll get it," said Arthur. He went to get Kate. When he entered the room she was in he saw a note taped to the window. He opened up the window, reached out, and pulled the letter in. It read:

Don't worry, Arthur Read. Your time will come. You'll see all of your horrible little friends in Hell once I'm through with you.

Love,

The Killer

Arthur shivered when he read. He knew exactly what that meant. He was going to die. But strangely, it didn't say when. And in his heart, he knew he was safe for now. He knew he would not be the next to die. He knew that if the killer was not caught, he would be the last. The killer was saving him for last. He didn't know how he knew, but he did know. He really did know.

A wave of relief washed over him. He would go to Buster's house. It would just be like old times, for he didn't think Buster was the killer. He just didn't have the brain capacity. They would watch Bionic Bunny and everything would be fine. Everything would be fine.

A few hours later, Francine arrived at Muffy's house. She rang Muffy's doorbell and Mr. Crosswire answered it. He ushered her in. Their servant, apparently, had left for he thought Elwood City was no longer a respectable place to live considering all the murders. Francine went up to Muffy's room to see Muffy waiting for her.

"Francine, I'm so glad you're here," said Muffy.

"I hope we're safe at last," said Francine.

"What do you want to do?"

"Let's play a game." They played for awhile, but then Muffy got bored.

"I'm bored. I want to do something exciting," said Muffy.

"Don't you think we're in an exciting enough situation as it is?"

"I guess so."

"It's stuffy in here," said Francine. "Can I crack open a window or something?"

"Do whatever you like. I have to use the bathroom. I'll be back soon." Muffy left her room and went down the hallway to her bathroom. As soon as she closed the door behind her, she had a very bad feeling. She felt like something very bad was going to happen and she would find out what it was when she returned to her room. She shook the feeling off and entered the bathroom.

When she was washing her hands, the feeling returned to her. She felt very frightened, yet she knew she was safe, for her father was in the house with her, and she also was relieved Francine wasn't the killer or she would have attacked her by now. She was worried for the other's safety. Suddenly, she pinpointed what was bothering her so much. The window. Francine had left it open. The killer could crawl in any time and just kill Francine. Then, she thought with growing terror, the killer could come and claim her life as well.

Suddenly, there came a bloodcurdling scream. Francine's scream. Muffy didn't even dry her hands as she rushed out of the bathroom and ran to her room. For a brief moment she was too frightened to open the door and see what was on the other side. She gathered all her courage and opened the door.

When she opened the door she saw blood all over the floor. Lying in the middle of the pool of blood was a severed hand. Francine's hand. Blood was everywhere and all over her stuff. She ran to the window. When she looked out into the night, she saw what looked like a figure dragging a body behind them.

Muffy ran to her phone. The first person she called was Arthur. Arthur told the others. Muffy then sat down in the middle of the pool of blood and started crying. Francine had been her best friend. She wiped the tears out of her eyes. She would have to tell her parents.

Police came shortly afterwards. By Sunday morning, everyone in Elwood City knew of the murder. Arthur and his friends were scared. Arthur's plan had failed. There wasn't even safety in numbers anymore. All they could do was wait. Wait and see who would be next. Wait to see who would die, and, if anyone, would live. The only thing they knew for sure was that they wouldn't have to wait long.


	7. Chapter 7

Seven

The killer was biding their time. It had been days since the last attack on Francine. They were waiting for something. Arthur didn't know what to think. School had closed. Too many students dead. It would no longer be a safe haven for Arthur and his friends. And his one deadly enemy. Arthur shuddered. He hated to think that he didn't really know one of his friends. That they were really a deadly killer waiting to strike.

Even though the being in pairs rule didn't work out, as evident by the attack on Francine at Muffy's house, they were still doing it. Well, not exactly, for they took it one step further. Everyone remaining was going to Arthur's house. There they could all keep a close eye on each other and report it to the others if one of them was acting strangely. They had all agreed to this with no hesitation. Being around each other was the only comfort any of them had nowadays.

Arthur was waiting patiently for the doorbell to ring. He was watching Bionic Bunny, but he couldn't really enjoy it at all. His parents were out yet again. So was everyone else's. He thought that by now everyone's parents would have learned to stay around their children because the attacks only happened when they weren't there, but the parents hadn't learned yet, so everyone was still vulnerable. Arthur jumped at every small sound nowadays. One time he was in the kitchen and an innocent little spider crawled onto the kitchen table, not looking for trouble. It sure found it. Arthur screamed at the top of his lungs. He went to the kitchen drawer and pulled out the biggest knife he could find. He went and chopped the spider into little pieces. Every little thing set him on edge, and the tension was unbearable. If he reacted that way to a spider, he wondered how he would react to the actual killer.

He shook the thought out of his head. If things went right, he would face the killer with his normal friends. If things went right. Lately things had not been going right at all. Everything had gone so horribly wrong in Arthur's life in a matter of days. And so far, he had been helpless to it. He suddenly got angry with himself. Every time he had had an opportunity to save the person being attacked. That's what he told himself. In reality, he couldn't have stopped any of them, but he was still angry with himself. He had finally taken things into his own hands, by making his house center stage. Whatever happened tonight, it would happen here. And he knew his house better than anyone. He had home advantage.

Suddenly he heard a loud crash from upstairs. He instantly froze in fear, but then he remembered the note from the killer he had received, and the feeling that for some reason he would be saved for last, if the game lasted that long. He shuddered. He had started to use the word game to describe this, just like the killer.

He walked upstairs, strangely unafraid for his life, as he knew he should be, because that crash had been from the killer. When he got to his room, the window had been shattered. On the middle of the floor was a brick with a note attatched to it. He didn't have to guess who it was from.

He picked up the brick. It was heavy. He tore off the note and started to read it. It said:

Hello Arthur. Feeling lucky to have made it this far? Well, guess what. You're perfectly safe for a while. But I must warn you of a terrible fact. One of your party that was supposed to come tonight won't be arriving. I will seal their fate within a matter of minutes. And after that person has been eliminated, we will enter the best part of the game, the part of the game I have been waiting forever to arrive. ENDGAME.

Arthur shivered. Tonight, tonight would be the beginning of the end. He tried not to think like that. Then he realized something. He had to call everyone else! They were in danger! He went downstairs to use the phone. First he called Buster. After three rings Buster picked up.

"Hello?" said Buster.

"Hey Buster, it's me, Arthur. Listen, don't come tonight."

"Huh."

"I just got a message. Don't leave your house tonight. You are in grave danger. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR HOUSE TONIGHT!"

"Okay, okay, I understand. Look, I was worried all night and didn't get any sleep. I'm going to take a nap. Call back later." Buster hung up. Arthur then proceeded to call Muffy. She picked up after two rings.

"Hello?" said Muffy.

"Hey Muffy, it's me, Arthur. Listen; don't leave your house tonight. I just got a message from the killer. He is on the prowl. Don't leave your house tonight. You are safer there. The killer is prowling the way to my house."

"Okay, Arthur. I'll listen to you. I trust you. I don't know why but I trust you."

"Trust is the only thing that's keeping us together nowadays. Listen, I have to warn Brain. Goodbye Muffy." Arthur hung up. He then proceeded to call Brain. He dialed the number. One ring. Two rings. Three rings. Four. Five. Six. Seven. Brain wasn't picking up. Then, a horrible realization hit Arthur. He had been too late. Brain had already left. Unless, thought Arthur, Brain was himself the killer. That was the only possible explanation. But then Arthur realized the killer was too smart for that. They would have gone back to their house. Arthur finally realized what a genius all of them were actually dealing with.

Meanwhile, Brain was walking quickly to Arthur's house. He didn't want to run into the killer in the middle of the deserted street. It was getting dark. If he saw anyone now there was no way he could ever make out their face. It was just too dark. He shivered, but not from the cold.

Brain suddenly felt an icy presence. Someone else was there with him. He could feel it. He had a knack for picking up other's presence. His parents called it his sixth sense. He had always done amazingly in hide and seek. The only tool he could rely on now was his intellect. In school, he was a genius. But could he outsmart a crazed madman? He doubted himself. Somewhere he knew his skills were about to come to a test.

Brain started walking faster. He had gotten really scared now. He broke into a run. He panted as he sprinted as fast he could towards Arthur's house. It wasn't far now. Only a couple of blocks until he finally reached the safe haven of Arthur's house. Maybe the others were already there. In his wishful thinking, he had stopped sprinting. He had stopped moving altogether. Suddenly, he realized he had dazed off. He shook his head to get rid of the feeling. Suddenly, he heard a loud thud directly behind him.

Brain froze in terror. He didn't have to turn around to know the killer was standing mere feet behind him. Part of him didn't want to turn around. That part thought it would just be quicker and easier if he just stood there. He would die peacefully, without a struggle. The other part of him wanted to turn around. That part didn't want to go down without a fight. That part still thought there was a chance for his survival. The part that wanted to turn around finally won out. He turned around.

Not a few feet away stood a dark, cloaked figure. He couldn't make out any physical features. The streetlights had completely gone out. All he could see was a dark mass that vaguely resembled the figure of a person. He couldn't even make out the sharpened hook, though somehow he knew it was there. And that it's intended destination was his stomach.

"This will be a satisfying kill," whispered the killer, in a dry, icy voice. "Your death will mark the beginning of the end. Too bad you won't make it to endgame. When you die, endgame will begin. I'm so sorry you won't be able to make it. I just didn't think you deserved to. You would have had so much fun." The killer laughed maniacally. It was more of a high shriek, like something a banshee would make, than a laugh. Brain took a step backwards.

"Your time has come, Brain." Brain froze. He stood staring at the slowly oncoming killer. Then he turned to run. For a brief instant, he only felt the feeling of cold, hard steel. Then, the unbearable pain came.

Brain fell to the ground, screaming in agony. He looked down. He was covered in blood. The hook had been shoved right through his stomach. Tears started to flow out of his eyes. It was the most intense feeling he had ever felt in his life. He looked up, to see Arthur's house not a block away.

"Just to let you know, it will be a slow, painful death. Even more slow and painful than Binky's death was. Keep that in mind as you slowly die." The killer disappeared into the darkness, and it was the last person Brain ever saw while he was alive. He died fifteen minutes later, his stomach acids having finally destroyed enough inside him to kill him.

The moment Brain died, Arthur felt a horrible feeling. He promptly threw up all over the kitchen table. After he had cleaned himself up, he knew someone had died. And once again, he had been powerless to stop it. He now only knew one thing. The middle stage was over. They were in endgame.


	8. Chapter 8

Eight

This was it. They had finally reached it after all of the murders that had taken place. They were in endgame. The news of Brain's death had sealed the feeling Arthur had felt the moment Brain had died. He knew they didn't have much time, even him. He could feel his days were numbered even though he would be the very last one. He had to figure out a plan that would save the remaining four of them.

But in reality, the remaining three of them. Arthur sickened at the thought that one of the other three of his friends was the murderer. But who? Arthur went through the list in his mind. Obviously, it wasn't him. He could rule out the fact that it was him with complete certainty. After Binky's phone call on that fateful night of Binky's death, Arthur was pretty sure by now that the killer wasn't Jenna, either. That left Muffy and Buster as the two remaining suspects. He considered the choice between the two. On the one hand, Muffy seemed the more likely candidate as the murderer. Arthur did not want to blame his best friend as the murderer, and he didn't feel Buster had the smarts to carry something this complex out. Muffy wasn't particularly smart in school, but she wasn't dumb, either. And besides, she was smarter than even Brain in some ways. She was the most cunning and the vainest, and Arthur could see how her rich-girl lifestyle would lead her to kill all those inferior to her.

But on the other hand, there was no way Arthur was going to completely rule out Buster as a suspect. Buster was his best friend, but that didn't mean anything. Arthur couldn't deny the possibility that Buster could have been playing dumb his whole life, just waiting for this opportunity to strike. Arthur shivered at the thought of Buster being the killer. If Arthur couldn't trust his best friend, who could he trust?

Arthur suddenly heard a crash at the window. He hadn't been expecting this, but Arthur realized it didn't really surprise him to hear such a noise. He was ready to accept anything happening to him nowadays, including waking up to find that this was all a dream. But he knew that out of all the things that could happen, that would be the last. He went upstairs and into his parents' bedroom where he thought he had heard the noise. There lay another brick lying on his parents' bed with shards of window glass lying around it. Arthur found it funny that the killer always used a brick. He went over to the brick and, sure enough, there was a note attached to it. It said:

Hello again, Arthur. Surely by now you know that it is only luck that you have made it this far and not skill or intelligence. In some ways, you're lucky that I'm saving you, but in others, you are quite the opposite of lucky. No one left alive has the power to stop me, and deep down in your heart I know you know that to be true. We are finally in my favorite part of the entire game. Endgame. Just three more are left, including you. It will not be long now before the game is finished. When it is done, I admit I will be sad it is over. But I guess I'll just have to savor your pain while it lasts.

Arthur shivered. Endgame. What did that really mean? Arthur couldn't figure it out now. He had a plan. He knew the course of action he was going to take. The killer said they couldn't be stopped by any of the remaining players, but he knew he had to try. It was like playing chess against a master chess player. Even though he knew he was a rookie, he had to try to checkmate the master killer, even if there was only a very small chance he would succeed. He hoped luck was on his side.

Arthur went to his phone and dialed Buster's phone number. One ring. Two rings. Arthur started to grow nervous. Then Buster picked up.

"Hello," said Buster in a weary tone. Arthur could tell from his voice that the game had begun to break his spirit into a million little pieces.

"Buster, it's me," replied Arthur. "Listen, I have a plan. A last, desperate plan, but it's still a plan. After this call, I'm going to call Muffy and Jenna and the plan will go into action. The plan is simple. Every half hour, each of us will call all of the other three. Then after we all do that, each of us will report to everyone else about the status of the other two. If everyone picks up, we know everyone is safe. If someone doesn't pick up, then we know the killer is on the loose. I say it takes at least half an hour for a killer to kill someone, so the one person who doesn't pick up one time is definitely the killer. Sound like a plan?"

Buster agreed to the plan. Then Arthur called Jenna's house and Muffy's house. Luckily, both of them picked up. Arthur told them of his plan and they both readily agreed to it. After that, Arthur sat on his couch and waited. He kept looking at the clock nervously, waiting for the half hour mark to arrive.

Meanwhile, Muffy was sitting on her comfy, expensive chair, looking at her fancy, expensive watch. She too was waiting for the half hour mark to arrive. It was almost there, just one minute away. Muffy had been holding the urge to use the bathroom for twenty minutes in case anyone called, but she realized she just couldn't wait any longer. Besides, what could happen in the quick time it took to use the bathroom? Nothing, right? Right?

Muffy ran up the stairs and went into her bathroom. She made sure to lock the door. She was washing her hands when she heard the phone ring from downstairs. She wanted to go answer it, but she wanted her hands to be clean. She figured if she called them back in a minute nothing bad would happen. She dried her hands on her pink towel and opened the door. That's when she felt the presence in her house. Then she knew something was horribly wrong. Usually her servant, Bailey, had locked the doors. But she remembered he had left town for he found Elwood City to be disrespectable. Her parents were out, and in all her worrying she knew she hadn't locked the doors. She also knew something even more important. She knew the killer was inside her house.

Muffy cautiously stepped out into the hallway. She hadn't walked two steps towards the stairs when she heard a voice come from downstairs.

"I know you're here, Muffy, and believe me, when I'm through with you, they're not even going to recognize you."

Muffy resisted the urge to scream. She knew she had to survive this. She knew all the money in the world wasn't going to save her now. She had always relied on her wealth, but now she knew she was forced to rely on her other positive attributes. She knew she wasn't as smart as Brain, or as strong as Sue Ellen, or as athletic as Francine, but that didn't mean she wasn't a quick thinker. And that didn't mean she couldn't hide well. Muffy slowly tiptoed down the stairs. She heard a pot being knocked over, and she knew the killer was in the kitchen, three rooms away. This was the advantage of living in a big house. There were many places to hide. Then the idea hit her. She realized the killer would expect her to hide in the house itself. She would go into the back of her house and tiptoe to her pool in the back and hide in there. She didn't feel like getting wet, especially with her nice clothes on, but she knew it was the best option she had at the moment.

She made it to the back without getting caught by the killer. She looked up to the top of her house to see a light being turned on. The killer was in her room. Muffy tiptoed into the cold night and to the edge of the pool. Being careful not to make a lot of noise, she lowered herself into the pool. She was safe. For the time being.

Muffy was cold, but she knew if she dipped her head under water she would get used to being cold and wet. She immersed herself completely in the water and closed her eyes. She tried to shut out the reality of her present situation and just escape into her fantasy world. Eventually, it started to work. Muffy forgot the need for air. She drifted off into her fantasy land just beneath the surface of the water. Then a hard grip shook her from her thoughts and pulled her out of the water. She was in the hands of the killer.

Authorities had trouble finding Muffy's body the next morning. The entire pool was red from blood, so it was hard to see where her body was. They realized it had sunk to the bottom of the pool and by noon they had fished her out. Her back had been completely ripped open by what authorities thought was a hook. Her spine had been exposed, and she had died due to this injury. Her face had an expression of complete shock on it.

Arthur calmly accepted the news of Muffy's death. He knew this was endgame, and that this was what you had to expect in endgame. He knew there were three left. Jenna. Buster. Himself. He prayed that Binky was wrong and that Jenna really was the killer. He knew at this point he couldn't rule her out as a suspect anymore. It was one of two options, Buster or Jenna. But deep down in his soul, Arthur was crushed. He was tired of trying. He would wait till the final person was murdered then attack the only person left. He wouldn't strike, he decided, until the killer struck. And once the killer struck, Arthur knew the end would come. Whether it would be the end for him or the end for the killer, he could not say.


	9. Chapter 9

Nine

One more. One more. One more. These were the only words running through Arthur's head at the moment. He could barely stand being alive anymore. He was more on edge now than he ever had been, and he knew he was going a little insane. He knew that the old Arthur was gone, gone forever and never to return. Never. It felt weird being a completely different person than you once were, but Arthur couldn't worry about that now. He couldn't afford to. The killer was going to strike this very night, Arthur knew it, and he knew he had to be prepared. He had to arm himself somehow. He had given up trying to save either Buster or Jenna. He didn't know which one of them was innocent and which one of them was the killer, but he knew it was a lost cause trying to save one of them. He knew the killer was way ahead of Arthur, and one of them would fall victim tonight. But while the killer was preparing for the death of Jenna or Buster, Arthur had the advantage of preparing to defend himself. In that way, he would finally be ahead of the killer.

There were no guns in his house. Not that it mattered. Arthur could barely hold a gun properly, let alone use it accurately enough to shoot the killer. Besides, Arthur knew if the killer took hold of the gun they would know how to use it well enough to shoot him. Arthur shivered at the thought. That was one way he would not like to die by the killer: being killed by his own weapon. Arthur found it shameful. He had to find something that he could use easily that couldn't be easily taken by the killer.

Suddenly, Arthur was overtaken by anger. He looked up towards his ceiling and screamed at the top of his lungs. The scream was for every one of his friends who had died at the hands of the killer. He screamed for Fern. He screamed for Sue Ellen. He screamed for George, and for Prunella, and for Binky. He screamed especially hard for Francine and Brain, his two closest friends who had died because of this terrible, awful game. And, as of yesterday morning when her body was found, he screamed for Muffy, too.

After this extended scream in anguish and anger, Arthur shook a little bit, then fell down sobbing. The tears were flowing out of his aardvark eyes. Suddenly, D.W. walked into his room to find him crying on the floor.

"What are you crying about?" D.W. asked him. Arthur knew she was teasing him, and he couldn't stand that. Not after all of his friends had died. How could D.W. be so inconsiderate? He would have to teach her a lesson.

"Get out of my room you evil bitch!" Arthur screamed at D.W. at the top of his lungs. "I hope your soul is ripped apart by demons and I hope your body is torn limb from limb! Then you would know how it feels to be my friends!" At these words, D.W. started sobbing and ran out of the room. Arthur knew D.W. would tell his parents, but his parents were understanding and knew the situation he was in, so they would know why he had to use such harsh language.

After a few more moments of sobbing, Arthur finally settled down. He knew he had to be strong. He knew he had to be courageous if he wanted to survive. He knew after tonight's murder, he would have to face the killer, one on one. He knew he had to win. The killer may have killed eight of his closest friends already, and were probably going to kill another tonight, but he couldn't let that knowledge stop him. He knew he would never survive if he thought he didn't have a fighting chance. He knew he had to have confidence in order to win this thing. And while the killer struck tonight, Arthur knew he needed to build up confidence for tomorrow night's showdown. And find a weapon.

Meanwhile, Buster was sitting in his house, in his living room. All alone. His mom had gone out to do some grocery shopping. She had promised Buster she wouldn't be long. She was late coming back from the store. Very late. Buster looked at the clock for what must have been the twentieth time. She should have been home half an hour ago.

Buster shivered. Every minute brought him closer to death. That much was certain. He turned on the television and decided to watch Bionic Bunny. That way, he could clear his mind of the situation he was in. He watched ten minutes of Bionic Bunny then turned it off. It wasn't helping. Nothing would help. Suddenly, a cold, awful idea ran through Buster's mind. It was one of the worst ideas he ever had, yet he knew he could not fight it. He knew he was powerless to resist it. It was horrible, and it would surely mean the death of him, but at least he wouldn't die by the hands of the killer. No, he would not succumb to the killer, he wouldn't allow himself. He knew what he had to do.

He would take his own life.

Buster slowly got up from the couch. He walked slowly towards the stairs that led to his room in a dream-like state. He was in a trance. In the back of his mind, he knew what he was doing, but his mind had put him into this state so his body wouldn't realize what it was about to do. That it was about to destroy itself. He slowly walked up the stairs. At the top, he turned and walked slowly down the hall towards his room. He was at the door, still in the trance. The trance wouldn't end until he was dead and gone. He put his hand on the doorknob. He slowly turned the doorknob. He pushed it open and walked inside.

In the middle of the room there was a noose hung from the ceiling. It was perfect for Buster's neck. And there was a chair underneath it.

Buster didn't even think about how the noose got there. He walked slowly towards the center of the room. He slowly got up onto the chair. He slowly put the noose around his neck. Then he kicked the chair out from underneath him…

The killer watched Buster struggle for what seemed like hours in the noose, but in reality it was only around a minute or so. When Buster finally stopped jerking around from the lack of air, the killer stepped out from the shadows of the room to deal with the body. She smirked. Another victim. She knew Buster, in his weak state of mind, would succumb to suicide and the noose she had placed in his room. Suffocation is not a good way to go. She cut the rope and let Buster's body fall to the floor. Now what to do with the body? Suddenly, a splendid idea came to her. She decided to give Arthur a little surprise…

Arthur was at his house, trying to decide between a pair of scissors or a knife, when he heard a crash from his bedroom window. Another brick. Or so he thought. Arthur went up his stairs and went to the door of his room. Something about this brick didn't seem right to Arthur. He hesitated, and then opened the door to his room. What he saw lying in the middle of his room nearly made him faint. It wasn't a brick this time.

It was Buster's head.

Arthur nearly fell over from shock. He went over to the middle of the room and looked down to make sure he was really seeing what he thought he was seeing. Sure enough, there was his best friend's head. He didn't know what to do. He bent down and picked it up. He fought back the tears that were welling up in his eyes. He looked at Buster's cold dead eyes. And then something fell from inside Buster's head onto the ground.

Arthur turned Buster's head upside down. It had been hollowed out on the inside. Arthur gagged and threw the head into the corner of the room. He looked down and realized the killer had hollowed out his head in order to hide their note in it. Their final note. Arthur slowly bent down and picked up the note. It said:

Arthur, you and I both know the time has finally come. The time for your ultimate demise. Your friends have gone before you, each one suffering more than the last. Now it is time for your end. It is time for your suffering. And believe me when I say this: your death will be the greatest suffering anyone in Elwood City had ever known. Except for me, of course. No matter what I do to you physically, it will never in a million years rival what you did to me emotionally. And that is why your time is at an end. But I did not just write this note to describe your suffering. I wrote it for another purpose. Tomorrow night, your time will end. But I am a fair player in this game. I will give you a fighting chance. We will battle on even ground. I will let you bring a weapon of your choice, and I will bring a weapon of my choice. We will battle it out in Mr. Ratburn's classroom. Meet me there tomorrow at dusk. I will already have unlocked the door to the school so you won't need to worry about it being locked. Then we will battle. Sleep well tonight, Arthur. You'll need your sleep if you're going to go up against me.

Arthur shivered at this horrible note. Now he finally knew who he was dealing with. Jenna. But then why did Binky say it wasn't her? Arthur couldn't think about such things now. He had to prepare for his final battle with the killer tomorrow. This would decide everything. He shivered. Mr. Ratburn's classroom. That would be the setting for their final battle. He wondered what weapon the killer would bring. He thought hard for a moment, and then decided that the knife would be his weapon of choice. Tomorrow, he would face the killer, but tonight, he needed to get some rest. He knew the killer was right. He could never face Jenna if he didn't get some sleep.

He got ready for bed and lay down on his bed. He tried to go to sleep. He tossed and turned, and finally he managed to go to sleep. But one thought kept nagging at him, even in his nightmares. He knew the horrible truth and it haunted him. He knew that one horrible, awful thing.

He knew the end was near.


	10. Chapter 10

Ten

Arthur rode towards his school on his bicycle. He had the large, sharp knife hidden in his shirt while he rode. The sun was slowly going down, it was approaching dusk.

The end was near.

Arthur tried not to think about anything as he rode towards his school and possibly towards his death, but he couldn't stop thinking about the situation he was in. Nine of his closest friends were now all six feet under. He was the only one left. Except for one other who had been the cause of all of this madness.

Jenna.

The name disgusted him at the very thought of it. He had always thought her a quiet, innocent little girl. She was always very polite and really nice when you got to know her. Or when you thought you got to know her. Arthur now knew that none of them really had ever known her at all. No one in the world would have expected her to carry out such brutal, calculated murders as the ones she had done.

It was a chilly evening. Arthur shivered and tried not to think about how cold it was, although he knew deep down inside that he wasn't shivering from the cold but from the terrible situation he was putting himself into. As he got closer and closer to the school, his stomach felt sicker and sicker. But he knew that if he did not confront the killer now, it would be too late. If he waited, the killer would find him and catch him off guard. Then the fight wouldn't be fair. He was glad the killer had picked neutral territory to fight in. He would use his knife to cut Jenna into pieces. He wanted revenge.

Then Arthur thought a horrible thought. What if he didn't make it out alive? What if Jenna did kill him? Jenna had said that he would suffer the worst death of all his friends. Some of his friends had suffered extremely painful and long deaths, so he didn't know what Jenna had in store for him. Would she take him back to her lair and torture him for days on end? Arthur didn't like to think about the possibilities. He knew he couldn't think negatively, he had to think positive if he was going to survive their final confrontation.

Suddenly, Arthur stopped pedaling and looked up. He had arrived at his school. He took a gulp, and then got off of his bike. He let his bike fall to the ground. He was too nervous to even have thought about it. His mind was focused on only one thing: finding and murdering the killer, the one who had done that to all of his friends. Jenna.

Arthur walked slowly up towards the front steps of the school. When he got to the entrance, he noticed there was no door. Then he noticed it was lying next to the entrance. Jenna must have broken it off of its hinges. He was scared of her strength.

He took a step inside the school. Since the sun was going down, it was getting dark, and all of the lights inside the school were turned off. He knew he should've brought a flashlight, but it was too late for that now. He knew he didn't have time to go all the way back to his house and then come back to the school. By that time it would be too dark to make his way to the school. He felt the end approaching ever closer.

He started walking down the long dark hall towards Mr. Ratburn's classroom. It was very dark, and he could barely see where he was going. He stumbled all the way to his teacher's room. Then, before he knew it, he was standing outside Mr. Ratburn's classroom. The door was open, and the entrance seemed like a gaping hole into eternity. Arthur knew what he had to do. He squeezed his eyes tight, not wanting to open them again, but he had to. He opened his eyes wide, held his breath, and took a step inside.

It was pitch black inside the classroom. Arthur couldn't see a thing, but he could tell there was something else waiting in the room. It was waiting for him. Arthur felt like something incredibly evil and wicked was trying to engulf him. He gulped. He could hear his heartbeat. It seemed incredibly loud to his ears. Worst of all, he had the sense that the killer knew exactly where he was, but he didn't know where she was.

"I've been waiting a long time for this," said a raspy voice that came from the far end of the room. Arthur nearly screamed, but he held it back. He knew he had to appear strong and tough and brave. Arthur hesitated, thinking about what he was going to do. Then he decided on a course of action. He would speak.

"Jenna, I know it's you," replied Arthur in a shaky voice. "Since you know where I am in this room but I don't know where you are, this isn't going to be a fair fight. Your note said you were going to give me a fair fight, and that's what I came here for. A fair fight against you. The light switch is on your side of the room and I'm asking you to turn on the lights because I want a fair fight."

"Fine," replied the killer in that same raspy voice. Arthur felt that the killer was trying to hide their voice for a reason, but he couldn't think about that now. He knew it was Jenna, and he was going to kill her.

Suddenly, the lights turned on. Arthur was momentarily blinded by the brightness. He blinked a few times to get used to the light, then his hand went to his shirt and he removed the knife from its hiding spot. But then he noticed something. The figure standing at the far end of the room wasn't Jenna.

It was Francine.

Arthur let out a terrified gasp and dropped the knife in shock. It clattered loudly on the floor, but Arthur didn't notice that. He was staring straight into the eyes of Francine. The killer. She had a wicked grin on her face. She licked her lips and Arthur's heart froze. The he looked down. In her right hand, she carried a large, deadly knife. Arthur looked to find her other hand, but found that it was missing.

"Hello, Arthur," Francine said in her normal voice. She was no longer trying to hide who she was now that it was out in the open. "Surprised to see me? I thought you would be. Don't worry, Arthur. I'll be the last one you'll ever see."

Arthur was fighting his shock and his fear. Words did not seem to want to come out of his mouth. For ten seconds he just stood there, looking for something to say in response to Francine, but he couldn't. Finally, he answered her.

"Wh-wh-why?" asked Arthur in a small voice. It was the only thing he could think of to say.

"Why what?" Francine answered angrily. "Why what? Why did you treat me like that for all of those years? Why did I harbor a deep hatred of every single one of you for all of this time? Why did I never tell you what I thought of you? Why were you so inconsiderate to me? Why you pushed me to do what I did?"

"Why?" Arthur asked again. It was the only thing he could think of to say.

"I'LL TELL YOU WHY!" screamed Francine at the top of her lungs. Arthur shook and fell back on to the floor. He expected Francine to rush up and kill him, but she remained standing where she was.

"I'll tell you why!" Francine screamed again. Arthur could see she was clearly insane. "I did it because I hated you. All of you! I hated every last one of you with all of my heart! And that's why I did it. I brutally murdered all of you because I hated you!"

"But we thought you were our friend," replied Arthur. He did not understand why Francine would ever hate them.

"I was your friend, or so I thought. But all of these years, you have always treated me horribly. All of you treated me like I was a piece of trash, like I wasn't deserving of anything. Every single one of you pretended like you were my friend. You talked a good game, but you never treated me like I was someone you cared about. None of you ever cared about me! And that's why I had to kill you."

"You killed random people from our school; you didn't just kill people you hated. You killed Fern first, what did she ever do to you?"

"I killed the least deserving ones first. Fern had always annoyed me. She told her stupid stories and was obsessed with Sherlock Holmes. She cared more about him than she did about me. Still, her offense against me wasn't that bad. That's why she was removed early from the game. I saved the guiltier ones for later so fear would eat away at their minds."

"What about Sue Ellen, what did she ever do to you?"

"Sue Ellen was my rival. She was good at sports and I was good at sports. There could only be one number one."

"George?"

"George and that stupid Wally disgusted me. He needed to go."

"Prunella?"

"Prunella with her fake psychic powers also disgusted me. She tried to control all of us with her mumbo jumbo, but I saw through the smokescreen of her lies and saw the true person that lay underneath. She deserved to die."

"Binky?"

"Binky was a bully who bullied all of us around, including me. I couldn't keep him alive, now could I?"

"But then next I thought you died?"

"Ah, and here is where my genius comes into play. I faked my own death, although I must admit it cost me dearly. I fooled that idiot Muffy and everyone else by leaving my hand at what everyone thought was a murder scene. In reality, while Muffy was going to the bathroom I chopped off my left hand and placed it on the floor of her room. I grabbed my bag filled with pillows to make it look like I had a body in there when Muffy looked out of her window and then I climbed out of her window and escaped into the night. And nobody was any the wiser for the trick I had played on all of them."

"What about Brain?"

"Brain is where everyone started to get very, very guilty. Everyone else before then hadn't done anything purposefully evil, but Brain was the first of the very guilty ones to die. Do you remember that soccer practice incident where he insisted I was out of bounds but in reality I was safe? I never got over that, and neither did he. I knew he still thought he was right, and I knew he needed to have a horrible murder to pay for what he had done to me."

"What about Muffy? She was your best friend in the whole world, and you killed her and left her body in her pool!"

"Muffy wasn't a real friend. Don't you remember all the fights we had? Don't you remember how much we used to argue. I came to realize that Muffy was just as stupid and selfish as the rest of you, but she was really bad because she was the one who pretended to be my friend the most, and that is why I killed her."

"But what about Buster? You two never fought! He was my best friend!"

"And here is where the real truth starts to reveal itself. I killed you because he was your best friend, Arthur. I killed him because he was keeping me from you."

"What?"

"Don't you get it yet, Arthur?" Francine shook her head. "Don't you get it by now? I loved you! And in a way I still do. And that is why you and Buster had to die last. Buster had to die because I was always jealous of him. He was your best friend, but I was not. But I loved you Arthur. I loved you. And I knew that if Buster was in the picture then I would never get closer to you, so I killed him."

"But if you love me, then why are you going to kill me?"

"I'm going to kill you because you never loved me back. Not once in your whole life did you ever recognize my love for you and love me in return. And that is why I have to kill you. You broke my heart into a little million pieces and I suffered more than all of you suffered in your deaths combined. That is why I need to finish what I started tonight. And that is why you will face the worst death of all."

Arthur couldn't take it. He slumped to the floor and lay there. He knew he could never fight back after everything Francine had told him. Tears rolled down his cheeks. All of his friends were dead because Francine had never felt she was loved. He knew deep down in his heart he was too heartbroken to fight her anymore. He would let her kill him, and he would join his friends, wherever they were.

He saw Francine advancing on him, clutching the knife. He knew she was going to kill him. He didn't want to die, but he was powerless to save his own life. The only thing he could do was to not think about what was happening to him, but he found that impossible. His face was wet with tears and he wished he wouldn't die.

When Francine got to where he was lying, she bent down next to him and raised the knife.

"Your death is going to be painful. I want you to know that the game is about to end and that I'm going to enjoy it with all of my heart. So think your last thoughts and breathe your last breaths because you are now going to die." Francine began to lower the knife towards Arthur's body. Arthur knew that this was the end.

Suddenly, Arthur heard a loud bang come from the corner of the room. In an instant, Francine's forehead exploded. Blood and brain matter sprayed all over Arthur. Her head had a large, gaping hole in it. Her eyes rolled to the back of her head and her body slumped to the ground next to Arthur's.

She was dead.

Arthur blinked several times to process what had just happened. He slowly got up and looked down at Francine's cold, dead body. Brain matter and blood oozed out of the hole in her head. A pool of blood started to form around her head. Her mouth hung slightly open and Arthur could see her tongue.

Arthur was still confused. Why had her forehead suddenly just exploded like that. Who or what had just saved his life? He turned around and saw the last thing he had ever expected to find.

In the corner of the room stood Jenna. She was holding a gun.

For a few moments, the two of them just stood there, staring at each other. Jenna was in shock over what she had just done, and Arthur was in disbelief. Finally, Arthur spoke.

"How did you…?" Arthur's question trailed off.

"I just had a feeling," replied Jenna. "As everyone started to get picked off one by one, I knew the clues said I wasn't one of the intended victims. I wasn't afraid like the rest of you, but I didn't know how to catch the killer. But then something inside of me told me to come here tonight. It told me to wait here until the killer showed up. I don't know if it was a message from beyond or just instincts, but I got here before Francine did. At first I thought you were the killer, but when I saw Francine come in I knew something was terribly wrong. Then I waited for an hour while she waited. She didn't know I was in the room with her. Then finally you came, and I watched everything that just happened. When she was about to kill you, I knew I had to act. Luckily, whatever told me to come here also told me to bring a gun, so at the last minute I shot her."

"Wow," replied Arthur. "I'm sorry for ever thinking that you were the killer. Thanks for saving my life."

"Aw shucks," said Jenna. She smiled. "It was no big deal."

"Well, what are we going to do now?" asked Arthur.

"I know what we should do."

"What is that?"

"Let's go home," Jenna said. She smiled at Arthur, and for the first time in a very long time, Arthur smiled back.

The two friends left the classroom and walked out into the hallway. They knew they would have a lot of grieving and a lot of explaining to do later, but now, they were just happy to be alive. Standing at the exit, the two friends took each other by the hand and walked out into the cool night air.

Arthur was happy that he and Jenna were alive. He was happy that Francine was dead. He was happy that his friends could now rest in peace. But he was happy for one thing above all. He had beaten Francine's sick and twisted game. He knew that after all the troubles he had faced, he had triumphed in the end. And after all of that, he knew that it was just one thing:

GAME OVER


End file.
